Save The Planet By Watching What You Eat
Even if you don't stay up to date on current affairs, you can't have missed the focusing in on environmental issues lately. Twenty years ago, very few people even thought about where their food, tableware or other products were sourced from. They just paid their money and got what they wanted. This attitude is not sustainable however, and a shift in thinking is needed especially in these times of weak economy and global warming. Here are some ideas to help save the planet and local economies when having a simple meal.
Shop Local. We take it for granted these days that we can pop down the local shop and buy some fruits from exotic shores and wines from the other side of the world for example. The fact this produce is sourced thousands of miles away has not long been in people's consciousness and the impacts are large. Not only does the transport release vast amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere, due to burning fuel and having to use a food and wine cooler to keep the produce chilled all the way, but also local food suppliers struggle to compete with low foreign costs. By doing as much of your shopping in local stores as you can and buying local produce, you will secure your communities future and help save the planet at them same time.
Less Packaging. The amount of packaging that you will find on many supermarket products these days is gratuitous. A single cake might be singly wrapped, inside a little box with a plastic place-holder, which is cloaked in cellophane and transported within a cardboard box, with the other cake boxes. More often than not this packaging is unnecessary, so try and avoid those products that go over the top with it.
Ethically Sourced Accessories. More than just the food you buy can influence the planet when you eat. Everything from the cutlery you use to the little wine gifts bought for yourself or other can have just as much influence and the consumables themselves. Ask yourself where this product has come from, is it something that could be made from a more sustainable material, and is this a disposable product when I could be buying a reusable one? Disposable chopsticks for example cause thousands of trees to be cut down every day, when a good reusable pair can last a lifetime.